I’m running the Lululemon SeaWheeze Half Marathon 2017 in Vancouver!

The bestie and I successfully signed up for the Lululemon SeaWheeze Half Marathon in Vancouver! I tend to choose destination races so I can explore another city and make it into a vacation. My first full marathon was in Hawaii and the gorgeous views made the grueling race bearable. (I should have trained better for that though.)

SeaWheeze isn’t your average half marathon. It’s a summer weekend of yoga, running, and an epic music festival. Over 10,000 runners run along the Seawall in Stanley park through breathtakingly beautiful Vancouver views and finish the race with an awesome party.

What I’m looking forward to at the SeaWheeze Half Marathon

• Enjoying Vancouver’s ocean views along the race route and challenging my endurance on those hills

• A pair of special edition, can’t-get-em-anywhere-else SeaWheeze run shorts. I can’t wait to see this year’s design! (Included in entry fee)

• The Sunset Festival in Stanley Park – an evening summer party of outdoor yoga, food, brew, and featuring music lineup–Young the Giant with special guests Cold War Kids. Experience all that with stellar sunset views from Vancouver’s iconic Stanley Park. (Included in entry fee)

• Exploring the city, finishing the race (with the bestie!), and relaxing at The Sunset Festival in good company.

The registration process

It was quite the online process. Actually grabbing a spot in this highly desirable race is a victory in itself. Imagine a heard of tens of thousands of people vying for the same spots, at the same time. We cleared our morning schedules and set a countdown clock when registration opened last November.

SeaWheeze uses Eventbrite for registration, so to save time we made sure we logged into our account before the registration window opened. We opened multiple browser windows and put our finger-clicking to the test. After getting kicked out of the virtual waiting room a couple times and waiting for what felt like an hour (but really 15-20 minutes) we finally got the confirmation that we were in!

There wasn’t group registration so we had to brave through the registration process separately, but at least we were on the phone with each other the whole time. I definitely felt the anticipation, the pressure, the anxiety, and the nervousness of “what if we don’t get in.” For as many races that I’ve done, I guess I never get used to the process that comes with registering for a popular event like this. (I’m still not sure what is the strategy for sign-ups like this. It felt like purchasing Coachella tickets all over again.) All the spots sold out within a half hour.

Preparing and Training

I haven’t officially started training yet, but I should soon. Over the next weeks, I’m going to tailor a workout plan and share my preparation process–training schedule, foods I like to eat, essential race gear, and what I wish I had known before signing up for my first marathon.

Connect & share with us!

Let us know if you’re also running the SeaWheeze Half Marathon or want to share your marathon tips.

Wayne and I look forward to exploring Vancouver in August. If you have any food, sights, and travel recommendations in Vancouver, feel free to leave a comment or email us at itsjoulife@gmail.com. We greatly appreciate it!